France Bans Grocery Stores From Throwing Away Perfectly Good Food

Chances are, a decent percentage of families won’t eat everything in their shopping cart, and that food will end up in an landfill along with nearly 35 million tons of perfectly edible food Americans throw away every year.

But one country is looking to change that — France just made it illegal for grocery stores to throw away edible food.

According to French newspaper Le Monde, officials just passed a bill in the National Assembly requiring food retailers donate edible, unused food to charity or to facilities where it can be broken down and reused as compost or animal feed.

French politician Arash Derambarsh sponsored the bill after he was horrified to see bleach being deliberately poured into supermarket garbages along with edible foods to stop people from rummaging through the trash.

The move by France is being applauded by food and environmental organizations worldwide, and the French politicians are hoping other countries hop on board.

Given that Americans toss out 20-percent more food than we did just 15 years ago, maybe it’s time to throw our hat in the ring, and no more food in the trash.